Dear SRP members, let me introduce myself first, I am Eric from Nebraska and I have been a long time lurker. I will explain my situation in hopes that someone can help me. I bought a Dovo 140 about 6 years ago, identical to Dovo Red Bone - Straight Razor Place Classifieds this except mine has green colored scales, and have never gotten around to using it until about 3 weeks ago. I cleaned the oil off of it and well being a Mechanical Engineer I decided to look at the edge under my microscope. With low magnification I could see all the hone marks from the factory and with higher magnification (400x) the edge looked like a handsaw. So I stropped it 40x on the canvas side and 60x on the leather side. It looked much better now under the microscope so I tried to shave with it.
I used hot water on my face then used my dads Old Spice brand soap and brush, probably 30 years old or so. I put a nice wet lather on and then put a towel around my face that came right out of the microwave. I sit until towel cools and re-lather up. I start my shave at my dominant sideburn and it pulls, so I try to lessen my angle of attack and it seems to help some but I still get a lot of tugging and stopping, so I decide more pressure isn't a good thing. I then change my angle to almost nothing and it glides over a bit better but leaves a lot whiskers.
I have been using my trusty OLD Gilette double edge razor which works but in some places it feels like I've shaved with a cheese grater.
I know it takes time and I haven't given up on the Dovo yet, but I do have some questions.
1. Do I need to get this honed first, even though according to Dovo they are shave ready?
2. I am in a wheelchair and shave sitting down, and all my life I've never shaved in a mirror, now I'm finding it very hard to shave using a mirror, anyone have any recommendations on a better way to shave in the mirror by not blocking your view with your arms or hands while shaving?
3. I am pretty sure I'm stropping right as I've watched a lot of the videos and such but is there a tell-tell way to know? Is it possible to put something on the edge which will be "stropped off"?
4. How smooth do straight razors' blade's look under magnification?
Hope you all don't tire of the noob questions and I appreciate any and all help even criticism is helpful if it will get me to a better shave.
Thanks
Eric